Steph Curry speaks on his ankle being tweaked against the Sacramento Kings.
The Golden State Warriors fell to the Sacramento Kings on Friday, 124-118. It was a disappointing loss for the Warriors given that Steph Curry, Kristaps Porzingis, and Draymond Green were all in the lineup.
The Warriors are locked into the tenth seed and had no incentive to ramp up their effort, but did need to build some momentum heading into the play-in tournament if they hope to make the playoffs and potentially pull off a first round upset.
Curry started in his first game since returning from injury, his third game overall since January 30, playing 28 minutes and finishing with 11 points on 3-8 shooting.
In the first half, Curry seemed to tweak his ankle. He managed to play through it in the second half, but didn't close the game due to his minutes restriction.
Steph Curry Speaks On Ankle Injury
After the game, Curry spoke to the media and was asked about the status of his ankle.
“As long as it’s not my knee, I can deal with ankles, I’ve been dealing with that forever," he said.
Curry praised the team for how they played in the third quarter as they look to find a rhythm and chemistry together. He said that he expects the team to be fine offensively because of the talent they have, but they have to play solid defense.
The Warriors trailed 63-51 at the half, but outscored the Kings 38-19 in the third quarter to take a 89-82 lead into the fourth.
Curry checked out of the game with 6:48 remaining with the game tied at 98. The Warriors were outscored 26-20 with Curry out of the lineup.
Finding Chemistry
While not official, the Warriors will most likely play the Los Angeles Clippers in the 9-10 Play-In matchup. The Clippers lost to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, giving the Blazers a leg up on the eighth seed. If the Blazers beat the Kings on Sunday, they will finish eighth, putting the Clippers in ninth.
The Warriors have just one game remaining, ironically against the Clippers, before the play-in tournament. While in most cases it wouldn't be wise for a team to tip their hand in a potential playoff preview, the Warriors are a different case.
Curry and Porzingis have played just eight minutes together, and while the results were good (111.8 offensive rating, 87.5 defensive rating), the sample size is far too small. Add in Draymond, and that trio has played just five minutes together to poor results (-19 net rating).